Tommy Nightmare(62)

“Did you tell Seth you don’t want to move to Charleston?” Darcy asked.

“We’ve talked about it,” Jenny said. “He just acts like I’ll get over it and move there with him. But big cities make me panic.”

“What does he say about that?” Darcy reached for the two-liter and refilled her own cup. “Want more Coke?”

“Sure, thanks,” Jenny said. “The thing is that Seth used to want to go to Clemson, where his grandfather went. And that would be totally fine, because it’s tiny and it’s in the middle of nowhere. I could cope with that. But his parents are really the ones who want him to go to Charleston, because his dad donated a bunch of money there, I think. And they say he’ll make more ‘connections’ in the city.”

“Meaning other rich kids,” Darcy said. “People his parents will like.”

“I guess.”

“But then that means…huh.” Darcy chewed on her lip and turned toward the TV.

“What?” Jenny asked.

“I kinda don’t want to say. Let’s skip it.”

“It’s okay. What are you thinking?”

“Well, you know,” Darcy said. “If he always ends up doing what his parents want, and his parents don’t want you together…”

Jenny thought about it. Seth’s dad did seem to have a lot of control over Seth’s choices. Seth and Jenny had been together for almost five months now, and he’d kept it secret from them. He’d even changed his mind about colleges when his dad told him to.

“I don’t think…” Jenny began, but she couldn’t finish the thought. Darcy might actually have a point.

“Plus all those other girls he’ll meet,” Darcy said. “I mean, tons of pretty girls, from richer families that his parents will like. You know?”

“Yeah, but…” Jenny knew she was right. Seth wasn’t just cute and nice, and even funny when you didn’t expect it. He also had his healing touch, the one that made everyone feel better when he touched them, erasing anything from a cold to cancer.

“The girls will be all over him, too,” Darcy said. “And I mean there’s gonna be thousands of them. Not like here.”

“But Seth can’t leave me. He’s the only one—” Jenny cut herself off. She had almost said, he’s the only one I can touch. She began to feel panicky. There wouldn’t be any other relationship options for her, but he could have any girl pretty easily. It hit her just how vulnerable and powerless she was in their relationship. He was really holding all the cards.

Her eyes stung, and she fought back tears. She didn’t want to think about losing Seth.

“Oh, crapsies,” Darcy said. “I’m such a dodo. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. I was just thinking about how guys are.”

“No,” Jenny said. “It’s okay. You’re right. I need to figure out what I’m going to do. I just wish he wasn’t moving to such a big city.”

“Here, let’s do a toast.” Darcy raised her glass, which featured Joanie from Happy Days. Jenny’s mom had bought the whole set of commemorative Happy Days glasses at the flea market, not long before she died. “To guys. And how much they suck.”

Jenny laughed and raised her matching Richie Cunningham glass. The two girls clinked their glasses together, and they drank.





Chapter Twenty-Eight


Tommy stood in the giant kitchen at Ashleigh’s house, making preparations for a huge pot of chili. Esmeralda was shouting in Spanish over in the living room. She’d been on her cell phone for twenty minutes.

“My mother is giving me so much shit,” Esmeralda told him when she returned to the kitchen. “I told her I needed a break and I went to Mexico. Are you actually cooking?” She looked at the pinto and garbanzo beans, the beef he was browning in the skillet.

“One of my specialties.” He touched a small bowl holding chopped jalapeno and habanero peppers. “Think you can handle these?”

“Oh, please. You should try my mother's cooking.” Esmeralda unscrewed the small glass jar of habanero peppers. She lifted one out by the stem.

“Careful,” Tommy said. “Those can burn you. You don't want to get the juice in your eye.”

“You think you are so tough.” Esmeralda lifted out a second hot pepper and offered it to him. “I bet you won't eat this.”

Tommy took it by the stem and looked at it. “That's a lot to eat all at once.”

“Maybe for you.” Esmeralda put the entire pepper in her mouth and bit it off at the stem. She gave him a closed-mouth smile as she chewed.